Vegan donuts at Ronald’s Donuts in Las Vegas

I assumed that while I could make baked cinnamon donuts at home, fried raised donuts were out.

Hasta la vista, Long Johns and bye-bye, Bismarcks. I gave a goodbye to glazed and didn't look back…

Until, that is, I heard murmurings through the blogosphere about the mythical Ronald's Donuts.

To look at it, Ronald's is your typical mom and pop donut shop in every way - non-descript booths, locals reading newspapers while they slurp cups of coffee, and a long case of donuts.

But what differs is that about 70% of their offerings are vegan. Yeast and vegetable shortening replace animal ingredients.

Interestingly, in and around the shop there are no signs anywhere noting their veganosity. Only about 10% of Ronald's customers are vegan or lactose intolerant, and they don't want non-vegan donut enthusiasts to reject theirs before they've tried them.

So the other customers suck down vegan donuts unaware, and Ronald's counts on vegans to spread the word to other vegans- and that they do.

For longer than I can remember I've been hearing tales told about Ronald's Donuts.

So when we set out on our cross-country adventure, the first stop had to be Ronald's Donuts.

We pulled into the strip mall that houses Ronald's. When I walked inside I was greeted by one of the owners behind the counter.

I asked her which of the donuts were vegan. She indicated the top two very long rows.

With that, I set about making some difficult decisions. I finally pared it down to a glazed twist, a chocolate-covered soy custard filled, and a raspberry filled all to share with my husband, who was waiting in the car.

We had plans of saving one of the donuts for later, but those ideas were quickly squelched with our first taste. The chocolate-covered soy custard filled reminded me of a Boston Crème donut - very light with a soft, almost sour crème inside.

The twist was airy and not overly sweet. But the very best of the bunch was the raspberry filled. The strong raspberry jelly stood out against the mild yeasty donut.

In no time at all, all of the donuts had vanished, and we were headed down the highway. The casinos and crowds of Vegas have never been a pull for me. But one thing might bring me back someday - and that thing is Ronald's Donuts.

It’s probably a good thing they don’t serve them hot. The petrol costs might kill me.

For more vegan donuts, check out these posts:

• Donut Friend in Highland Park (Los Angeles), California
• Voodoo Doughnuts in Portland, Oregon
• Vortex Doughnuts in Asheville, North Carolina
• Glam Doll in Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Korean donuts in New York City, New York
• Sticky Fingers Bakery in Washington, DC
• Stan’s Donuts in Chicago, Illinois
• Icon Donuts in Cedar Falls, Iowa